#governments should be afraid of their people

[missvelvetsstuff]

Misunderstandings & Miscommunications

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Summary: Reader works as an administrator for the Thunderbolts* and quickly falls for the White Wolf. The team is hesitant to trust her and drama ensues.

Note: As usual I'm stuck in a story and starting yet another one. This has been rolling around in my head since we went to see Thunderbolts* so hopefully getting this out will help knock some inspiration for The Situation Room and No Benefits.

I've tried to keep the reader neutral but she is a she and as always taller than average. I haven't seen a story like this one but haven't been able to keep up with all the new works so if it seems similar please know that's not my intention.

Anyhow, I hope y'all like it. Likes, comments and reblogs are always appreciated.

LMK if I should keep going.

Warnings: angst with a happy ending, swearing, cannabis use

Chapter 1

Y/N fidgeted next to her aunt as the elevator rose to the top of the New Avengers Tower. The woman standing next to her snapped.

"Y/N! Stop fidgeting. I'm taking a chance giving you this job and I need you to tell me right now if you're not up for it."

Y/N scoffed "Don't try to intimidate me, Auntie. I'm not afraid of you, or them but you know I hate wearing pantyhose so I don't know why you insisted."

"It's more professional. You can't skulk around in cut off jeans and tank tops when dealing with the government or the press." She looked her niece in the eye, even though it made her neck ache because her niece was so much taller. "This is an important position so I need you at your best. We need to project a certain image and at least look like professionals who know what they're doing." She looked Y/N over, "You look nice but a little make up wouldn't kill you."

Y/N rolled her eyes at the shorter womans theatrics "I've been doing administrative work including PR work since long before graduation which was almost 5 years ago, this won't be any problem. You know that. You also know that my skin doesn't like make up."

Val nodded "I'm well aware of your experience and education since I paid for all of it but this is more than administrative and PR. I need you to keep an eye on these losers and keep them in line. They can't be trusted. Don't let them get away with any of the shit you pulled in school because just like then, I'll find out everything. And you know that these people don't need to know that we're related or they'll never trust you."

Y/N sighed again "Yes auntie, I know I'm a slut and degenerate but I was never arrested or pregnant, had a great time and graduated at the top of my class so-"

She stopped speaking when the elevator stopped and the doors parted to reveal a large open area with a bar on the side and kitchen area next to it. She grabbed the handle on her suitcase and forced a faux friendly smile that was eerily similar to the one her aunt wore, before following her out of the elevator.

Val spoke up "Hellooo, where is everyone? I have someone you all need to meet. If you- OH!" She squeaked as Alexei popped up from behind the bar.

"Hello Miss Val, who is your lovely friend?" He questioned.

Val shook her head "Get everyone in here and I'll introduce you all to her." She crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot on the floor as she waited.

Y/N looked at Alexei with a grin and a shrug as they waited.

Yelena and John wandered in next. John went to speak but Val's glare shut him up. Yelena glared back and leaned against the wall, looking bored. Next, Bucky came out looking annoyed until he saw a stranger and glared at her, making Y/N smirk and wave at him. Bob wandered into the room and looked at Y/N in confusion before looking around the room at the rest of the team. Before he could comment, out came Ava who groaned as soon as she saw who it was but jumped in excitement when she saw who was with Val.

"Poppy! It's my sweet California Poppy!" Ava hurried to give Y/N a tight hug.

Y/N laughed as she hugged her friend back "I'm sorry I didn't call but things have been hectic." She pulled back and looked at Ava. "You look good, better than the last time I saw you. Feels like it's been forever."

Val cleared her throat "Right, I forgot you two were friends. No matter, Team this is Y/N Y/L/N. She has worked for me in other positions and will be responsible for the teams administration and Public Relations. Making sure you have the support staff, supplies and whatever else you need. She will also keep your schedules straight since there will be plenty of congressional testimony, press and talk show guest spots so the people can get to know you and develop some trust. Any questions?" She paused for a few seconds and before anyone could say anything was returning to the elevator.

"Ok, great. Keep me updated..." And the elevator doors closed.

Y/N kept her arm around Ava and smiled at the team "I already know who you all are so, no need for introductions. I've actually spoken to all of you on the phone. Except for Sargent Barnes."

Yelena looked her up and down before turning to Ava "You know this woman?" Ava nodded and Yelena continued "How?"

Ava smiled at Y/N before replying "Poppy worked with Dr Foster, who helped me stabilize my powers. I would have lost my mind without her."

Yelena nodded but before she could say anything else Bob interrupted "But why do you call her Poppy when Val said she was Y/N?"

Ava chuckled "We were at a university in Southern California when we met. I forget which one. Poppy was a student and helped Bill with grading papers and the like. She's from California and went on and on in the spring when the state flower, the California Poppy, blooms. Orange bursts of color everywhere, she'd get so excited and point them out every time we went out." She shrugged "I just started calling her Poppy."

Y/N smiled at her friend "You all can call me Y/N or Poppy if it's easier. I hope we can all get along. Val told me to get whatever you guys need so just let me know and I'll do what I can to make it happen. She told me that one of you could show me to one of the empty rooms? She also said there's an office for me behind the teams reception area, one floor down."

Ava nodded happily "I'll show you, there's an empty room across the hall from me. I'm so glad you're here and she didn't hire someone off the street. We can take your stuff to your room and then I'll show you the office."

Poppy reached for her suitcase but Bucky picked it up before she could. He gave her a tense grin and headed down one of the halls.

Poppy looked at Ava who simply shrugged and they both followed Bucky. He stopped and opened a door, letting the ladies enter the room first, following right behind them before setting Poppy's suitcase down. "Is this all you have?"

Poppy shook her head "No, I have a trunk and a couple of boxes that should be here tomorrow. Val insisted that I needed to be here right away but it doesn't look like the chaos she led me to expect."

Bucky grinned uncomfortably again "You caught us in a quiet moment. They never last." he turned to leave the room "Make sure Ava shows you how to set up your door for the biometric scan so only you can get into your room. So, uh, yeah welcome to the circus." He quickly walked away before she could respond.

Poppy turned to Ava "Did I do something? Or is he always so charming?"

Ava shrugged "He doesn't seem to be great with change, barely talks to the rest of us so I think you're fine."

Poppy's phone buzzed and she checked her texts before rolling her eyes. "Fucking Val. Now she sends me info about getting into the security system and the computer in my office. Typical."

Ava laughed "Yeah she seems to keep everything on a need to know basis but then doesn't trust anyone with the info they need. I'll take you to your office and we'll figure it out together, I seem to recall you are pretty good with computers."

They spent the next 2 hours in her office, chatting and getting Poppy set up. Poppy stretched at her desk and looked at her phone "It's almost dinner time and I think I've had enough for one day. What do you guys do for dinner? Does anyone cook or do you order out?"

Ava smiled "I remember that you could burn water so you won't be doing any cooking."

Poppy giggled and started typing on her phone "You act like that's some kind of punishment. If y'all are nice I might do some baking. Let's see what everyone wants to order."

She hit send and went to set it down but she received multiple replies almost immediately "That was quick and most votes are for pizza or Italian. I guess that's an easy place to start." she pulled up the app for one of her favorite local pizza places and put the order in before looking up at Ava "You know what I miss the most about California? I mean besides everything. Round Table pizza, no one compares."

Ava smiled at the memory "Damn, I haven't thought of them in ages. We'll have to take a trip whenever we get vacation time. You'll have to talk to Val about vacation and pay because she pulled her BS, announced us as the "New Avengers", dropped us all in here. and disappeared."

Poppy scoffed "Sounds just like her, it's exactly what she did when she sent me to work for Dr Foster. You know what she says, she's a "big idea" person and expects us serfs to handle all of the details." she stood and stretched, yawning. "C'mon, lets go to my room so I can put on something more comfortable."

After she changed into a pair of sweats, a t-shirt and slippers, Poppy and Ava went to the common area just in time for the night guard to call and tell her the food arrived. They walked in and what sounded like a robust conversation stopped abruptly with everyone turning to look at her.

Poppy shrugged with a sad grin, "Don't stop on my account, what y'all have to say about me is none of my business." she sighed "I'm going downstairs to get the food if anyone wants to join me. There's quite a bit."

Yelena stood "I'll go." and headed for the elevator.

Poppy looked around and didn't see any more volunteers so grabbed Ava's hand and pulled her along.

The ride down in the elevator was tense, Poppy was quiet waiting for Yelena to start grilling her. She didn't have to wait long before Yelena turned to face her "So you're from California. Where, exactly?"

Poppy smiled "It's a small town outside of Los Angeles, in the mountains. Big Bear Lake. It gets a good bit of snow so is mostly skiers and tourists but it's very pretty."

Yelena nodded "I've heard of it. Do you still have family there?"

Poppy shook her head "My dad died when I was little and I don't have any other family but my mom who passed a few years ago, so it was just me and her when I was growing up. I feel pretty lucky to have grown up in such a beautiful area. I have a friend that still lives there but it's been awhile since we talked."

Yelena looked at her like she was trying to read her mind. "How do you know Val?"

Poppy stammered a bit before clearing her throat "Oh, I uh well you see her ex was friends with my dad. Val felt bad for my moms troubles and helped me get into college. I was in advanced classes in high school and Val let me intern with her in the summers. I've worked for her or with her associates almost as long as I remember. She's the one who referred me to Dr Foster."

Yelena looked skeptical and ready to keep up the questioning until the elevator stopped and the doors opened. They walked up to the main reception area, greeted the delivery guys and grabbed the food. They almost needed to ask for more help but managed to carry everything. 6- pizzas, 3- large pans of pasta, a large pan of salad, 3- twelve packs of soda and 2- large cheesecakes.

Poppy smiled "Sorry about the amount of food. I was told that super soldiers eat more than the average person. Figured it's better to get too much than run out of food and start my time here on the wrong foot."

The ride up was quiet until Poppy's stomach growled, she flinched "Sorry, I guess I am hungry, thank goodness this elevator is quick."

As if on cue the elevator stopped and the doors opened. Bucky and Alexei were waiting and helped grab the food before taking it all into the kitchen. Poppy felt a tingle of electricity when Buckys hand brushed against hers as he took the pans of pasta and her breath caught. She couldn't tell if Bucky heard and hoped he didn't, reminding herself that this was a business and sleeping with the hottest guy in the building, maybe in all of Manhattan, would probably end badly for her.

Poppy found paper plates and napkins and some plastic bowels/utensils for the pasta. The room was full of hushed comments as they all worked around each other to fill their plates and sit at the table. It was almost silent for a bit, except for the sound of chewing and hums of appreciation.

Bucky ate quickly, staring at Poppy the entire time like he was trying to figure her out and could see right through her. It was disconcerting and tied her stomach in knots so she could barely pick at her food. He finished eating, stood and cleaned his dishes before thanking her for the food and excusing himself.

Poppy felt bad, starting her time with the team on a lie but knew Val would have a fit if she told them their relationship so just gave Bucky a shy smile when he thanked her.

The rest of the team seemed to have relaxed a bit around her and after they finished eating and cleaning up they laughed at Alexei's stories before Poppy saw how late it was getting.

"Thank you all for welcoming me. If you aren't busy tomorrow I'd like to have a meeting after I've gone through the instructions Val left for me so I have some kind of clue what's going on. Maybe early afternoon but right now I need my beauty sleep. G'nite."

Ava helped Poppy find her way back to her room "I have some special brownies, you want one?" Poppy offered.

Ava nodded "I could use a good nights sleep." she took the brownie that Poppy offered and said goodnight.

Poppy put some of her things away and set her alarm for 6am to get an early start on her official first day.

In the common room, the team spoke softly until they heard Ava's bedroom door close. Then Yelena spoke up "I don't know if we should trust her, she's hiding something."

Note: A field of California Poppies during the superbloom in 2018. I miss my home state.

[arielsojourner]

USA people! Buy NOTHING Feb 28 2025. Not anything. 24 hours. No spending. Buy the day before or after but nothing. NOTHING. February 28 2025. Not gas. Not milk. Not something on a gaming app. Not a penny spent. (Only option in a crisis is local small mom and pop. Nothing. Else.) Promise me. Commit. 1 day. 1 day to scare the shit out of them that they don't get to follow the bullshit executive orders. They don't get to be cowards. If they do, it costs. It costs.

Then, if you can join me for Phase 2. March 7 2025 thtough March 14 2025? No Amazon. None. 1 week. No orders. Not a single item. Not one ebook. Nothing. 1 week. Just 1.

If you live outside the USA boycott US products on February 28 2025 and stand in solidarity with us and also join us for the week of no Amazon.

Are you with me?

Spread the word.

[brightlotusmoon]

That film did help revolutionize me. Back then, I didn't really understand the way I do now. The movie crawled into my brain and nested there, along with the rest of the Wachowski films. I need to rewatch with my More Adult brain.

The Wachowski sisters really understand the assignment.

“People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.” - V for Vendetta (2005)

[0rb0t]

please watch A Bug's Life and V for Vendetta. in that order.

[vintageseawitch]

something that hits especially hard whenever i remember it: "Street Fighting Man" by the Rolling Stones playing during the "V for Vendetta" movie credits~

[disasterhimbo]

[ID: a bluesky post by sketchmasterskillz.bsky (@skychmstrskllz) dated December 5, 2024. It says, “CEOs are in danger, we need to put all of them in a submarine until we know it’s safe.” End ID.]

[pedulum-chronometry]

What I need this March is people protesting the elongated muskrat or the government to have “beware the ides” as a protest sign or rallying cry

[foxlecter]

Going to be selling some V for Vendetta tote bags soon 🫣

[godihatethiswebsite]

[glugglugs]

I think more zionists should be pushed into canals, actually.

[reallysaneguy]

it's bizarre to me how many people say to me "I would, but I don't want to take anything off-track" or something along those lines. I wish we were taught more about protests and revolts in school so people understand that they have a voice

[starlightshadowsworld]

Calling all Brits on this hellsite.

We all saw Elon Musk do the nazi salute at the Trump inauguration. We know that he is influencing and fanning the flames of right wing political parties.

And that very well may include ours.

Because Elon Musk has pledged to donate $100 million to the Reform party. He has since mentioned that it might be hard to give such a large sum now.

But I don’t think we should take our chances. And I think we can agree that letting billionaires influence our countries politics is a terrible idea.

If you also agree here’s a link to a Parliament petition.

It calls for the government to remove loopholes that allow wealthy foreign individuals to make donations into UK political parties (e.g. by funnelling through UK registered companies).

As it is a parliament petition the government are required to debate it in parliament. But for that to happen it needs to reach 100,000 signatures.

Non British folk I’m afraid you guys can’t sign but I encourage you guys to reblog so that more people can see this.

[foxlecter]

Obsessed with the way this turned out

[baekuras]

wow

okay so a company i applied to IS interested in meeting me....for the usual assessment test stuff

now usually that is done online however

they emailed me that they want to meet me/others presumably to do the test IN PERSON at 9:30am...............in a city that's 3 hours away 3 hours once public transport starts so i couldn't even BE there at 9:30 if I wanted to bc nothing drives which would mean i'd have to stay overnight which is like 100-130€s for smth that's basically an online test which means i am likely to fail at the math portion if anything

i am not spending 100-200€'s for a "maybe" no, none of the possible travel costs would be reimbursed

it may be a city job but damn i don't have the energy for that

nevermind that it's my last vacation day and if i didn't have vacation it'd be impossible

[thebreakfastgenie]

It is extremely disturbing how many posts I see claiming that Roe v. Wade was overturned on Biden's watch and blaming him and the Democratic Party for it. It's disturbing on a number of levels.

First, it was Trump and Bush-appointed justices who handed down the Dobbs decision. This is a flagrant example of blaming Democrats for things Republicans did, and not coincidentally is one of the the most widely felt differences between the two parties. As a result, it's usually the first example Democrats and their allies point to; this misappropriation suggests a deliberate attempt to undercut that fact.

Secondly, and related to the first point, it obfuscates who the real enemy is, and I am comfortable using word "enemy" to describe the Republican Party because of the policies they advocate and enact. The truth is that states controlled by the Republican Party were where the effects of Dobbs are most severely felt, while states controlled by the Democratic Party are passing laws to protect abortion. It is important to know which party opposes abortion and which party supports it. If the Republicans gain control of the House, Senate, and White House, they will pass a national abortion ban, as they have done at the state level in several places.

Thirdly, blaming Biden for Dobbs demonstrates a very concerning lack of understanding of how the government functions. The judiciary is its own branch of government; judges are appointed by the president and confirmed by the senate. It doesn't matter who is president when a decision is handed down, it matters who was president when the justices were appointed. People sometimes react to this by moving the goalposts and claiming the real issue was a failure by Democrats to "codify" Roe v. Wade. I am not sure what "codify" means in this context, and I'm not sure they are either. One thing it does not mean is that congress can pass a law saying "abortion is legal forever." Republicans could easily repeal such a law and it the federal government cannot necessarily prevent states from restricting abortion at the state level. Roe v. Wade was a ruling stating that the constitution guaranteed a right to privacy, which included the right to have an abortion. This prevented abortion restrictions in a way federal law cannot. That doesn't mean passing federal law protecting abortion is a bad idea, but it isn't a foolproof protection. It's fair to argue that the Democratic Party and the left of center generally were complacent about abortion. The form of this complacency was not taking the courts seriously, while the right spent fifty years openly filling the courts with anti-abortion judges.

The last thing that worries me is that this is popping up phrased almost the exact same way all over the place. I am afraid that it is not merely incompetence, but intentional misinformation, that is then repeated by the incompetent who believe it.

I know some will probably dismiss this post as being from a "vote harder" liberal Biden supporter, but whatever your feelings about Biden, the Democratic Party, or the democratic process in the U.S., you should care about the truth. The truth is that Roe v. Wade was overturned by Republican-appointed judges and abortion bans are being enacted by Republican elected officials, and Joe Biden opposes these things. You can do with that information whatever you wish, but you denying it is dishonest.